A Beautiful Fight
by castlet0pia
Summary: She's going to do this. Right now. She's going to tell him what he told her.
1. Chapter 1

**It doesn't have any actual plot, though.**

**+ I wrote this down on paper, but finished quite fast. **

**Hope you enjoy it. (:**

* * *

_But it was not your fault but mine,_

_and it was your heart on the line,_

_I really fucked it up this time,_

_didn't I, my dear?_

Mumford & Sons – Little Lion Man

* * *

She tries to keep it all in. She does. Tries. But she can't – fails to try.

Her knees buckle and she can't stand any longer, can't hold. Her body falls to the bed behind her, her back tumbling down on the faint purple covers.

She shivers. She forgot how cold her bed can get, never let it bother her too much. But it does now. It bothers her.

She lets out a shaky sigh, wipes at her moist cheeks with her fingers. She can't let this break her. She's been trying to show him how much he means to her, God knows she _has _been. But the way he's been acting these past few weeks is confusing her. It's _killing _her. She would try to fix it if she could, she really would, if he would just talk to her and _God_, she hates him just a little bit for it.

But the fact is that she can't. She can't hate him. She can't feel the exact opposite of what she really feels.

Because she loves him.

_She loves him. _

* * *

His head pounds and he tries to take a sip of the whiskey resting in the glass. He can't force himself to do it. He can't, because he won't mourn over the fact that she probably doesn't feel the same way, won't mourn over it like her father did over his wife. He doesn't know what to feel anymore, but he knows that he can't do this to her. He can't find his answers and cure in the alcohol. It's not enough.

So he rather puts the glass down on the wooden table, sits back in his office chair and scrubs his hands over his face.

_Do you want it badly enough to get over being hurt? _

Yes. He wants it – her. _So badly._

But he doesn't know if she'll let him have her.

He has to try. He has to get it over with, because he's tried not to, tried to switch off his love, but he couldn't because it doesn't work that way and he knows now that his mother was right.

Love is not a switch. When it comes to _his_ love, it's a switch that you can only turn _on_. Never off.

So he decides to fight for her.

Because he still loves her.

_He loves her. _

* * *

She stands up, her hands trembling, every nerve in her body tingling, on fire. She grabs her gun and her badge from the side of her bed where she'd tossed them earlier, gathers her keys in her hands and wraps herself in a coat.

She's going to do this. Right now.

She's going to tell him what he told her.

_I love you, Kate. _

Yes.

* * *

He's panting when he steps out of the elevator, but he doesn't care. He shuffles over to her door, takes hold of the drops of courage floating inside him, pulls them together and raises a hand to knock.

He doesn't get the chance to do so.

* * *

She can't believe her eyes when she opens the door.

'Castle?' her voice is dry and heavy with tears, but she pushes them down, looks at the man standing in front of her.

He looks like he has just run all the way here from his apartment and she wonders if he did.

Something inside her swirls and she steps back, notices him watching her.

And then he speaks.

'I – I'm sorry. I shouldn't have – sorry.'

* * *

He turns to walk away, because _damn it_, he's sure that she was just heading out to meet someone for a drink. Well, not someone – a guy, he's pretty sure.

He feels like he's been punched in the gut and then her hand is on his wrist and she's clutching him like her life depends on it.

'What – why are you here?' He can't bring himself to look her in the eyes, so he focuses on a spot on the wall, right next to her shoulder, and she still has her fingers wrapped around his wrist and he can't breathe.

'I'm not – it's not – doesn't matter,' he mumbles, tries to pull his hand away, but she doesn't let him.

'Castle.' She sounds desperate, but he can't do this, can't tell her he loves her again and have her tell him she doesn't feel the same.

'Forget it, Kate.'

'No.' Her voice is strong and unwavering and right there and she still holds the power to make him fall in love with her more every second.

_No? _

'Kate, it's nothing, just let it go.' He wants to call her Beckett, not Kate, but this is the woman he loves, and he can't deny it.

Her grip gets stronger and when she speaks, he can't stop the shudder that rocks his frame.

'I won't. I _can't_.'

* * *

He looks a lot like he wants to run away and then there's this tiny part of him that seems stunned, fascinated by her.

She's missed that look.

'I have to know, Castle.' She sees his brows furrow in confusion.

'Know what?' She braces herself, takes a deep breath, realizes that this is the point where they break.

_I'll miss you. _

'Why you stopped waiting,' she whispers, her eyes never stranding away from his.

* * *

His mouth falls open and he feels his stomach clench.

_What? _

'Wha – what are you talking about?' he croaks out, stares hard at her.

'You're pulling away and I can't stop you and I don't – '

'Stop.' She shuts her mouth and her fingers twitch against the skin on his wrist. He's quite sure that she can feel his racing heartbeat, because he can feel it pounding in his head, behind his eyes, in his stomach, _everywhere_.

_Tell her the truth. _

'I never stopped, Kate. I never stopped.' Her hand falls away from his wrist and she stumbles back into her apartment, hits the door with her left shoulder and he winces, almost reaches out to make sure she's okay, but then suddenly she's pulling him in with her hands on his jacket and she shuts the door behind him, turns around to face him, biting her lip.

'You – you didn't?' He shakes his head.

'No.'

* * *

She allows a careful smile to spread on her face, but he still looks hurt and angry.

She opens her mouth to say something, but he beats her to it.

'Where were you going?' She looks down at her coat and starts unbuttoning it, feels him push her hands away, his fingers doing it for her.

Oh, but this is not what they do. This isn't – but it's right.

_So right. _

'I was actually going over to your place, but then you – '

'Do you love me?'

* * *

He asks it with a slight tinge of hope added to his voice. He doesn't want to sound so desperate, so hopeful all at once, but he can't stop his heart from doing it its own way. As much as she's hurt him, he still loves her and she's just so beautiful and he can't even breathe right now.

Really, what is air?

* * *

She gasps, her heart fluttering in her chest.

It's okay, she's practiced this and she knows her answer and she tries to tell him, but he steps away and sighs.

'No, don't – don't answer it.'

* * *

He feels like falling apart, but he can't move. She has him captivated still, even though he just wants to get this over with, go home and lick his wounds.

'But I want to.' His head snaps up and he can _hear _his pulse thrumming in his ears, tries to push it away, but she is looking at him so lovingly and he stills completely.

'Well?'

* * *

She lets a shy smile play across her face and tucks a strand of chestnut hair behind her ear. She looks up at him, sees a flicker of hope in his eyes, grabs it as a lifeline.

A beat, a stutter of a heart and then she's giving herself to him.

'I love you, Rick.'

* * *

Air rushes out of his lungs at once and his legs give up under him. He feels his weight crush to the floor and Kate's hands cupping his face as he sits breathlessly on the floor.

_She – what! _

'You . . . do?' Concern in her eyes melts away with her smile and she draws closer to him on her knees, his hands reaching out to grab her waist.

She nods, tilting her head to the side and he can't help but think how adorable she looks and he just wants to kiss her so badly right now.

'I do.'

* * *

She's swimming with the fact that his lately-cold eyes have turned back to ocean-blue and strokes her thumbs over his cheekbones.

'I can't – you . . . You love me? You love me.' A chuckle escapes her lips and she leans her forehead against his temple.

'Yes,' she breathes into his ear, feels him shiver, his hands tensing on her waist as he pulls her on his lap and suddenly he's hugging her tight, arms crushing her lithe body to his.

'Why did you lie to me, then?'

* * *

She barely hears him ask the question, but when she realizes what he said, she pulls back, keeps her hands at his sides to stop him from running before she figures out how _he _figured out and tries to fix this, them.

'How do you know?'

'Heard you in the interrogation room with Bobby Lopez.'

'The bombing case?' she gasps and closes her eyes when he nods.

'Rick, I'm sorry, _so sorry_.' She feels him pull away and she whimpers, chokes on a sob, opens her eyes. He's sliding away from her and it stabs her in the chest, her scars burning. She reaches out for him, tries to take his hands to at least have some physical contact.

'I can't, Kate.'

* * *

She yanks her hands away, a tear slipping down her cheek and he regrets saying it.

_Kate._

'No, not – not like that, I just – I can't be touching you right now.' She looks even more hurt and he mentally curses himself, drags the pads of his fingers against her thigh. It makes her look back into his eyes, but _damn it_, this would be much easier if she wasn't looking at him like that.

He takes his hand away and sighs.

'Just tell me, Kate. I've asked you so many times if you remembered and every time you said no. I don't understand. If you lo – love me, then why?'

* * *

She looks away from him, bites her lip in an attempt to hold back her tears. One traitorous tear still escapes her eye, though.

'I was scared.'

'Of what?' His confusion isn't making this easy on her and she runs a hand through her hair, lets out a shaky breath.

'Of everything. I lost my mentor and I had just been shot and then you told me that . . .' She stops, looks back at him.

'What?' he grumbles, but she shakes her head, gathers the words in her head.

She has to do this right.

'I was still with Josh at the time,' she continues, 'and I didn't even know if you really meant it or if you just said it because I was dying and then after you came back, you've never said it again and I'm just so scared of us and it's killing me, Castle.'

She is fully sobbing now and she puts her hands on her face, feels the moisture flooding her skin.

'I really fucked it up, didn't I?'

* * *

He gasps, mostly because she's crying in front of him, being all vulnerable and beautiful, and partly because she almost never swears.

'Kate.'

'I know I did, Castle.'

_No._

'You didn't, Kate. There's still a chance for us.'

He can't stand seeing her like this, angry with herself and crying and it breaks his heart more than anything else ever could, so he scoots closer, wraps his arms around her shoulders, holds her to him. He can feel her tears soaking through his sweatshirt on his chest and he strokes his hand down the length of her hair and up, making knots between her silky strands.

'Shh, Kate, it's alright, shh, we'll be fine,' he keeps whispering, can't stop himself from shedding a tear or two, too.

'Can you maybe just say it again?' she asks and he pulls back, sees her shake her head.

'I mean if you – if you still feel the same.' She looks so insecure and tiny and fragile and _broken _and he loves her, loves her with all his heart.

_Ah, Kate. _

'I love you, Kate. I can't stop. I love you. I love you.' She looks like she might cry again, but she chokes back the teardrops, leans close, so close that he can smell her and it's still cherries, _always _cherries.

'I love you, too,' he hears her whisper against his cheek before her lips touch his, small and delicate and perfect and it's all _Kate._

* * *

It's sweet and passionate and she's never felt this way before, but at the same time she feels like this is so familiar and she wants more.

She wraps her fingers around his neck, tugs him closer, pulls his lower lip between hers, hears him groan into her mouth.

'Kate,' he growls and she pulls away from him, breathless.

'What?' she moans, licks her lips and shifts in his lap.

Wait. Lap? When did she – oh, it doesn't even matter.

She presses closer to him, catches his tongue with hers, feels him squirm under her.

* * *

She's hot like _hell_ and they're kissing and she's on his lap and now he's really wondering how is it possible that he's not dead yet.

'Kate,' he tries again and she breaks the kiss, looks at him, curious.

'Would you – I mean do you want to, you know, go on a date or something?'

_Smooth._ It seems as though he's lost all coherent thoughts. Not that he's complaining, but he's always thought that when he first asked her on a date, it would be something more . . . extraordinary. Like she is. Because she deserves that.

She shakes with laughter, kisses his cheek, nods.

'I'd like that very much, Mr Castle.' She hears him exhale next to her ear and she pulls her head back, presses her lips to his chin, his lips, revels in the feeling of his warm breath against her skin.

'So, tomorrow night?' She grins, doesn't care that they're making out on the floor in her apartment, brushes her knuckles over his cheeks.

'Yeah, Castle. Tomorrow sounds good.'

**Thoughts? **

**I can continue this if people are interested. (:**

**Ariela**


	2. Chapter 2

**Uhm, yeah. Here's chapter two. I decided to write three chapters of this, so look out for another one. (: **

**I hope you enjoy this as much as you've enjoyed the first chapter. **

**Love you guys. **

* * *

_Would you dance if I asked you to dance?_

_Would you run and never look back?_

_/…/_

_Would you tremble if I touched your lips?_

_Would you laugh?_

_Oh, please tell me this._

Enrique Iglesias - Hero

* * *

She wakes up at 5 AM the next day. It's not the hour she usually wakes up at, it's earlier actually, but her insides have turned into mush and she's full of energy, couldn't sleep if it was a matter of life and death.

As she stands in the shower, she remembers what happened yesterday, realizes that they have finally moved past the unspoken thoughts, past secrets and past everything that was keeping them apart for so long.

He went back home yesterday after she insisted that they'll see each other tomorrow, but not before having one last make out session on her couch. Yeah, well . . . she didn't really complain about that.

She is flaring with power and happiness as she walks into the bullpen; even Ryan and Esposito can notice it. She can't stop her smile, can't stop the fluttering of her chest, can't stop the gasp that escapes her lips when she sees her coffee already waiting for her on her desk. She walks over to it, picks it up, notices it's still warm.

So Castle was here earlier than her. Which is unusual, but it gives her an extremely enormous sense of confidence.

She looks around the bullpen, stops her eyes on Esposito. He points with a finger to the breakroom and she sends him a thank-you smile. Her legs are light like wind as she moves towards the breakroom with a big grin plastered on her face.

She spots him standing there, facing away from her with his phone in his hand.

'No, Gina, I can't . . . Yeah well, you could have told me it was tonight . . . No, I won't come . . . Because I have plans . . . Yeah, a date . . . And that's none of your bussiness. Just do what you do best and tell them I'm sorry I can't be there.'

He hangs up and turns around and his phone almost falls out of his hand as he jumps.

'God, Kate, you scared the hell out of me.'

'Really? Do I look that bad?' She sees him grin at her as he puts his phone back into his jeans pocket.

'No, you look beautiful.' She blushes and looks down at the floor, smiles at her ridiculous shyness.

* * *

She is just adorable. He has no other word to describe her right now. She looks all radiant and happy and his breath catches at the thought that he's guilty of it.

He takes a step closer, tilts her chin up with his hand, makes her look at him.

'Hey,' he says and moves his hand to slide down her jaw and her neck, into her hair. She sighs and her eyes flutter.

'Hi.'

He leans down, close, just to kiss her good morning, but they're interrupted when Ryan knocks into Kate while looking down at the folder. They all stumble, Kate crashing into his chest, Ryan swaying on his feet.

'Wow, I'm – you're – never mind,' he mumbles and walks back out to his desk.

'I'm so getting revenge on him for interrupting us,' he exclaims, can't help himself, and his breathing gets a bit irregular when she wraps her arms around him and presses her cheek to his.

'I'm with you, partner.'

* * *

The day passes by slowly, mostly because they don't have a murder to solve and because she can't stop playing footsie under her desk with Castle.

He's sitting right next to her, leaning so close that she can smell his cologne (he obviously put on a little extra today), shuffling through the papers she has to fill out.

Well, since he's helping, he's filling them out, too, and the whole stack of paperwork is going to be gone very soon if they keep up their tempo. It just seems so natural, sitting behind her desk with him, passing files back and forth, almost as if those few weeks when he was pulling away from her have never happened.

She closes another folder, drops it on a pile on her right, takes another one from Castle, notices that he's writing something on her desk in small black . . . letters? She leans in close, tries to make out what he's writing, but suddenly his hand clamps over her eyes to stop her from looking.

'Oh no, Beckett.'

'Castle.'

'I'm not quite done yet. You'll just have to wait and see. Be good in the meantime.' She pushes his hand away and tries to look again, but then his face is milimeters away from hers and she can't think straight.

'Kate. Stop looking. This is my last warning.'

'Yeah?' she breathes out and he nods, flicks his eyes down to her lips just as she wets them with her tongue.

'Yea – yes.' He clears his throat and presses a light kiss on her cheek, then pulls back and covers the place on the desk where he has written with a folder.

He smirks at her, then puts a solid hand on her thigh, winks as his fingers curl around her knee.

'Just keep your focus on the paperwork, so we can get out of here soon.' She grins and nudges him with her shoulder, then drops her gaze to start working again.

A little hard, what with his hand tracing random shapes on her thigh, but she does it.

Yay!

* * *

They manage to finish the paperwork rather quickly. It's 3 PM when she puts away her pile of files and turns to him.

'So, we still have another 4 hours until you have to pick me up for our date,' she says quietly and arches an eyebrow at him. He nods and leans back in his seat, stretches his arms above his head. She lets her eyes trace his body up and down, lingering on his lips, then looking back into his amused eyes.

'What do you propose we should do, Detective?' She shrugs and leans her elbow on her wooden desk, rests her head on her hand.

'Don't know. We could go home now and see each other after four hours, but I have a feeling that you don't want that.' She sees him narrow his eyes as he rubs his chin with one hand.

She'd give everything to be able to do just that right now.

'Yeah, and I have a feeling that you're just as hungry as I am. One meal consisting of Chinese take-out is not really a meal. Plus, we ate three hours ago.'

'Hmm, yeah.'

'So, you up for a late lunch at Remy's?' She snorts and stands up from her chair, grabs her empty mug to take it to the breakroom.

'Like that's any better than Chinese?'

She puts the mug down into the sink in the breakroom and turns around to go back to her desk, when she's met by Castle's warm mouth on hers. She smiles in the kiss, wraps her arms around his neck and sighs.

'This is nice.' She chuckles and pulls away.

'_Just_ nice?' she tempts and he shakes his head eagerly, grins at her, whispers something in her ear that makes her blush.

They hear a throat being cleared next to them and they pull away from each other.

Esposito is rolling his eyes at them as he steps forward to make himself a coffee.

'You guys totally occupied the breakroom. Do you even realize that most of the police officers are afraid to get in, because they think you're gonna shoot them if they interrupt you?'

They laugh at Esposito's antics and shuffle out of the room.

'Sorry, Espo,' she offers as she walks past him and pats him on the shoulder.

* * *

They're sitting at Remy's, eating chocolate milkshakes and french fries along with big burgers, when a woman approaches their table.

'Excuse me, hello. Um, are you Richard Castle?' He sighs and offers the woman a polite smile, nods.

'Yes, that's me. How may I help you?' The blonde bimbo seems to snap back into her usual-self, because she leans forward, so that her cleavage is clearly visible and licks her lips slowly.

It makes Kate's stomach turn over and she feels the need to punch this woman.

'I was thinking if you could sign my chest,' she says matter-of-factly and holds out a pen for him. Castle grabs a napkin from the table and the pen she's holding, then scribbles down his autograph. He picks up the napkin and presses it into the woman's hand along with her pen, then he stands up and takes Kate's hand, gives her a peck on the lips for the woman to see.

'Come on, honey, let's go,' he says softly, then drops a few dollars on the table and pulls her out of the diner.

As soon as they hit the streets, they start laughing.

'Oh God, Castle, did you see her face?' He snorts in amusement and wraps an arm around Kate's waist, presses a kiss on her temple.

'Well, you should have seen yours.' She stops laughing and pulls her head away to look at him.

'Excuse me?' She stops him on the sidewalk and narrows her eyes at him. He lets a sly smile spread across his face as he speaks.

'You were all disgusted and jealous and – '

'What? Castle, I was _not _jealous,' she huffs out and releases his hand, walks over to the other side of the street. He follows quickly behind and wraps his arms around her middle to stop her from running away.

'Kate,' he whispers into her ear, feels her shiver against him.

'Just admit that you were jealous. You were jealous when I kissed Serena, you were jealous when you found out that Sophia was my muse. You're a very jealous person, Kate Beckett.'

* * *

He would give anything to see her face when he's talking about her being jealous, but he settles on the way her whole body tenses against him and then she turns and he can't feel anything but her lips on his.

Her hands come up to grab the lapels of his jacket and he moans as she deepens the kiss. He tangles his fingers in her hair and she moans back, bites his lip, soothes the spot with her tongue. Suddenly someone bumps Castle's shoulder and they're brought back to reality.

She clears her throat and licks her lips, grins at Castle, then grabs his hand and pulls him after her.

* * *

'Mmm, Castle.' She breaks the kiss and breathes against his lips.

'What?' he asks and brushes his fingers under the hem of her sweatshirt, making her eyelids flutter.

'I'll see you in two hours, okay?' He groans and presses her more firmly into her apartment door. She feels like her body is about to explode with the proximity and she has to take a deep breath to convince herself that it's not a good idea to drag him into her bed right now.

'But - '

'Castle. Two hours.' He cups her bottom, making her gasp, and leans in to whisper into her ear, 'Can't wait.'

She lets out a breathless laugh and pushes him lightly away.

'I love you,' she whispers into the space between them and she knows that this is absolutely right, can't believe she was missing all this just because she was afraid.

She sees his eyes widen and then his lips crush on hers and she has to bark out a loud laugh as she pulls away.

'You don't know how good it feels to hear you say that.' She grins and opens the door to her apartment, then steps forward to hug him. She inhales his scent and she thinks she can smell herself on him. It's not really that much of a surprise, seeing as how much time he's spent in her personal space today.

She pulls back and sends him a smile, then steps into her apartment, turns around as he takes a step back.

'Hey, Kate?' She looks at him over her shoulder.

'Yeah?'

'I love you too.' He winks at her and then before she can catch her breath, he's already gone.

She lets a smile bloom across her face and closes the door, leans back against it.

She's not scared anymore. She's ready for him.

She _is_.

* * *

By the time he gets to her place, he's practically jumping up and down with nervousness.

He's a little early, but he's just so eager to see her that he can't even bring himself to care.

He knocks on the door and a few seconds later it opens to reveal Kate Beckett putting a shoe on her foot. She smiles at him and straightens.

'Hi.'

'Umm.' He lost all coherent thoughts when he saw her, even breathing has become a problem for him. She is wearing a beautiful strapless satin beige dress, the hem of the dress hugging the middle of her thighs tightly. Her hair is falling like a waterfall around her shoulders and she just looks breathtaking.

'What's the matter, Castle? Cat got your tongue?' He gulps,then launches forward to claim her lips. She lets out a surprised gasp at the contact, but cathes up rather quickly. He puts his hands on her back and groans when the only thing he can feel is just Kate's soft skin and she chuckles into his mouth, arches her back as he traces the length of her spine with his fingers.

'No,' he mumbles against her lips and she pulls away in confusion.

'No what?'

'No, _you_ got my tongue.'

She shakes with laughter and pushes him away from her so she can lock the door. She turns back to him and they walk together down the hall, his hand resting on the small of her back, his fingertips teasing her bare skin, making her shiver over and over again. In the elevator, when he makes her shiver for the fifth time (_yes, he's counting_), she grabs his hand and intertwines their fingers.

'Stop it,' she tells him with a shaky voice and squeezes his fingers. He grins at her, presses a kiss to her cheekbone, right under her left eye.

'Yes, darling.'

'Castle.'

'Shutting up now.'

* * *

They drive in the town car to a small Italian restaurant. As soon as they step into the dimly-lit middle-sized Italian restaurant, her mouth opens without her permission.

'Really?' He tugs at her hand and looks at her curiously.

'What?' She follows him straight to the kitchen doors and a smile creeps its way across her face.

'Nothing. I just - I guess I thought you'd bring me somewhere more . . . fancy.'

'Don't you like it?' he asks her, stopping in his tracks.

'Oh no, it's not - not that. I love it, I just - I have never pegged you for this type of guy. Well, maybe I have, but still . . . I'm pleasantly surprised,' she rumbles and he laughs at her, pulls her after him through the wooden door. The smell of a small domestic kitchen is wonderful and she feels her stomach swirl. She's hungry, yeah. She hasn't eaten anything since they went to the Remy's, because she simply wanted to leave some space in her stomach for whatever delicious food she knew they were going to eat. And now that she's here her stomach can't help but grumble.

Castle apparently notices, because he laughs and slips his hand around from her hip to her belly, caresses his feather-light fingers over the fabric. She shivers as he puts his lips on her neck and chuckles softly into her ear.

'You're apparently hungry.' She watches the cooks dance around the counters and ovens and nods, leans her body into his touch.

'The question is just _what _are you hungry for.' She swallows, clasps her fingers around his wrist on her stomach where he's dragging his fingers slowly lower and lower.

'Rick,' she whispers shakily, feels him smile into her neck.

'What, love?' Her body erupts in goosebumps as soon as he whispers his question and she closes her eyes.

'Rico!' She opens her eyes to see a small man in his fifties standing in front of them with his hand extended. Castle uncurls his fingers from around her dress and clasps the man's hand.

'Giovanni. It's been too long.'

'That it has,' the man says smoothly and releases Castle's hand. He averts his eyes to look at Kate.

'And just who might this young lady be?' Castle seems to light up with the question and he wraps his arm around her waist again, looks at Kate when he answers.

'Giovanni, this is Kate. My partner.' The small man grins and extends his hand out for Kate to shake.

'Nice to meet you. I've heard a lot of things about you.' Kate lets out a breathless laugh and looks at Castle with narrowed eyes.

'Well, I hope they were at least _nice_.'

'Oh, not nice. _The best_,' Giovanni says and she looks at the man, then back to Castle who is grinning sheepishly.

'Were they now?' Giovanni seems to have noticed the energy they have flowing around them, because he laughs and points between the two of them.

'I take it you two are a little bit _more _than just partners finally?' Kate chuckles and nods, feels Castle's hand trace a circle on her hip.

'Yes. I do wonder how much he has told you, though. You seem to know a lot about us,' she says and reaches out to pinch Castle's side, making him squeak. She laughs with Giovanni at her wonderful man and then Giovanni takes them to their table.

'Your usual, Rico,' he offers and Castle shakes his hand again in thankfulness.

'Thank you, Giovanni.'

* * *

'So, what's the deal with Giovanni?' she asks suddenly, breaking the comfortable silence.

'What?'

'I mean, he's Italian, right?'

'Yeah, he is.'

'But I couldn't hear an accent when he was speaking.'

'Well, his family moved here from Italy when he was a year old, so he had almost no influences on his speech. But I think he's always been like this; a real gentleman, you know.' Kate smiles, takes a sip of the red wine they got earlier.

'How long have you known him?'

'About twenty years. I met him when I started to write my first novel. I came to this restaurant with a laptop and he was interested in what I was doing, so we started to talk and before we knew it, I had already promised that I'll come back soon.'

'That's nice.' He nods, reaches out across the table to curl his fingers around hers.

'It is.'

They have just finished their desserts, and although they were sure they couldn't eat anything, they ate it all.

This restaurant's food is _amazing. _He has to thank Giovanni later again.

He puts down the napkin and hears the song he has requested the band to play. He stands up and holds out a hand for her. She arches an eyebrow, but the corner of her mouth wrinkles up in a soft smile, which he takes for encouragement.

'Care to dance with me, Kate?' She ducks her head, but it's too late, because he already saw the flush on her cheeks and the way her eyes sparkled.

He is about to take her hand, but she looks up and bites her lip and he's still again.

'Sure, Rick.' His breath catches, because she doesn't call him Rick that often and he wants to hear it again, wants it forever.

She has no idea what she's doing to him.

She places her hand in his and stands up as he gently pulls her to her feet and in his arms. He leads her to the center of the restaurant where a few couples are dancing to a soft jazz song. He feels light-headed, like his head is just about to explode with the fact that this is them now. And they're obviously not going anywhere.

She presses her chest into his own, flicks her hazel-green eyes to his mouth for a second, then looks back into his eyes. Her hand comes to rest on the nape of his neck where she cards her long slender fingers into his hair, the other hand resting peacefully in his. He holds her close to him, runs his hand over her back, stills it on the small of her back.

He apparently stops dancing, because the next thing he realizes is the heel of her shoe pressing into his foot gently. She did it on purpose. He shakes his head to clear the pictures in his mind (ones that include white dresses and oltars and first dances as -) and then she's suddenly laughing breathlessly. She pulls him closer to her and presses a soft kiss to his chin.

He's mesmerized, in awe of this woman. She has literally taken over his heart.

She pulls back and looks at him with her eyes full of love and hope and _future_. This is them now.

God, she's so beautiful.

* * *

She has no words for how perfect this is. She can't believe that she's been missing this just because she was afraid of stupid things. She could have had this sooner if -

'I love you,' he suddenly whispers against her lips and then he's kissing her so tenderly that she feels like she's going to spontaneously combust.

She kisses him back with all she has, tries to make him see that she's in this with him. That he's not alone.

By the time they stop kissing, she can't even speak coherently, let alone say those words back to him.

She makes a mental note to do it later.

* * *

'Thank you for tonight, Castle. I had a really good time,' she confesses, tucks a fallen tendril of her hair behind her ear and looks up at him through her lashes. He takes a step closer, lets go of her hand to put both of his on her hips.

'Yeah?' She nods, lets him wrap her up into his arms, kisses him back.

'Want to come in?' she asks into his mouth, catches his tongue with her teeth. He groans in response, reaches behind her to open the door. They stumble back into her apartment, her fingers already searching for more skin, unbuttoning his shirt.

'Wait, Kate.' She pulls away, breathing hard and he has to close his eyes.

'What?'

'I don't know if it's a good idea,' he says and then feels her lips on his throat. He has to clutch her waist to remain standing and he lets out a shaky breath.

'Dammit, Kate.' She catches his lips instead, slows the frenzied kiss he starts, runs the pads of her fingers gently over his cheeks.

'I want you, Rick,' she starts and his heart flips around in his chest, because come on, this is Kate who's calling him Rick and telling him she wants him and unbuttoning his shirt. He's a goner.

'Kate,' he croaks out, hugs her tightly. She returns the hug, presses a soft kiss to his cheek before pulling away.

'No more waiting, Castle.'

They don't.

**I know I should be writing High School Love, but I just can't get myself to write angst when there's _love _on the actual show . . . I'll try to write it as fast as possible, I promise. **

**Review and make me happy? (:**

**-Ariela **


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